


Sirius Loves James?

by WolfyWordWeaver



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Non-Magical, Alternate Universe - Sports, Aro!Remus, Aromantic, Concussions, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Getting Together, Head Injury, Humor, M/M, Miscommunication, Misunderstandings, Unrequited Love, these boys have no brain cells
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-22
Updated: 2020-05-05
Packaged: 2021-02-27 19:48:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22851259
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WolfyWordWeaver/pseuds/WolfyWordWeaver
Summary: James is trying to help Sirius date Remus and when Sirius' anxiety botches up his confession, he still ends up with a date but for the wrong reasons. Can Sirius figure a way to actually confess to the right person? Fake dating, accidental proposals, head injuries, and drunken wisdom are all a part of the process.
Relationships: Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Comments: 54
Kudos: 150





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [CasualMaraudering](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CasualMaraudering/gifts).



Sirius took several deep, grounding breaths as he and James marched up towards their dorm room. 

"Go on, man!" James cheered in a excitable whisper, actually ignoring Lily Evans walking by as he attempted to bolster his best friend's confidence for attempt #394 at confessing feelings to one Remus Lupin. "Just tell him how you feel! It'll go great, I just know it!"

"Just let it right out," Sirius muttered to himself, trying to repeat all those encouraging chants James had been showering him with. "Tell him. It'll be fine. Just fine."

"Sirius, are you-"

"Shut it, Peter!" James intercepted, not wanting Peter to throw a wrench in the whole plan by informing Sirius that he looked horribly pale and sickly from nerves. "You are the man!" he attempted to reword the almost bomb to Sirius' tenuous confidence. "Say it with me: _I am the man!_ "

"I am the man," Sirius whimpered.

"No, no, like you mean it! Like you're going to fucking put that ball in the damned hoop!"

"I am the man," he tried again, feeling a little more steel in his spine. Sports analogies were always a good way to communicate with him. "I. Am. The. Man!"

"Attaboy!" James cheered. "Just like that, with confidence! Just say it. Real easy, no fooling around or trying to be indirect. Just, for the love of all things holy, _tell him_."

Sirius got the slight impression that maybe James was doing this just as much for his own sake as he was doing it to support Sirius. Maybe he was finally desperate to get Sirius to shut the fuck up about his useless pining over their long-time dorm mate. As if the prat had room to complain with his record breaking six-year unrequited love for Evans. Shaking the negative thoughts away, Sirius turned his focus back to mentally pumping himself up. He could do this. This was Remus, only the most perfect person in the whole universe. 

"Oh no," he whispered, feeling the overwhelming perfection that was Remus snarling at his own tender self-image. Sure, he was a good _friend_ , but he was nothing special that would make Remus want to actually _date_ him.

"No, don't start doing that!" James intercepted again. "You are perfectly lovely and everything that he wants and desires. I mean, you've lips made to kiss for hours! And you're tall enough to make him need to tilt his head back for a good look! These are all good things! And you're bloody funny and smart and fucking fit!"

Taking a deep breath, Sirius tried to grab onto the never ending confidence that gushed from his brother. "Okay, just tell him. Straight up."

James gave him two thumbs up before shoving him towards their door. 

Stepping through the door, it was as if Sirius was stepping through a portal into a realm of only goodness and peace. True, his and James' side of the room had clothing strewn about haphazardly and there were at least three basketballs precariously placed about and asking for someone to trip over them, but on the other side of the room was the object of his whole-hearted affection. Remus was lewdly biting his lip in thought as he read from a thick tome on his thighs and one hand was caught mid-snare in the mess of waves and curls in his unruly hair. Sirius almost couldn't help the adoring sigh at the visage. Then those green eyes looked up from the lines of text and his lips curled up in a smile, the flesh of his lips tugging around the pearly teeth pinning it down. 

" _Oh,_ " he murmured in worshipful delight.

"What?" Remus asked in amusement.

"Oh, uh, oh! I mean, hahaha, obviously." Remus tilted his head in confusion and Sirius tried to backpedal and remind himself of why he was here at this very moment when Remus had a break between classes. "Hey, Remus, can I, uh, tell you something?" His stomach clenched in terror.

Remus nodded, kind smile still perfectly in place. "Of course you can, Sirius. What's up?"

Ugh, his eyes were so green and perfect with their little flecks of gold and his scraggly eye tooth that was twisted a little crooked was catching on the edge of his lower lip like it always did because the man never got braces and now that he was trying to force his eyes away from those lips he was fixating on those golden little freckles and...

"Sirius?" Remus tried again. "You can tell me anything, you know."

The words were right there at the tip of his tongue, a confession at least four years in the making. It would be so easy, just _say it_.

"I...uh, Remus, I..." Those golden eyebrows raised in encouragement and Sirius felt his brain short-circuit in panic. "I'm in love with James!" he blurted out before clasping hands over his mouth.

_OH NO, SHIT, NO!!!!!!_

"Oh?" Remus replied quite calmly, the encouraging expression on his turning into confusion. Then it all smoothed over back into earnest affection. "I guess that I shouldn't be so surprised; you two are rather close."

_Oh fuck._

"But don't think that I'm trying to discourage you from saying anything to him! No, no, on the contrary!"

_OH NO._

"I mean, from the way he was yelling compliments about you outside of the door, I think it's safe to say that he likes you too."

_Bloody hell._

"Oh wait, James is a pretty oblivious guy," Remus continued, completely blind to the mounting horror in Sirius' demeanor. "I mean, he's been so stuck on Lily for so long, how rude. To you! Maybe you just need to do something drastic to get his attention?"

"Uh, drastic?" Sirius squeaked weakly.

"Yeah," Remus encouraged. "Not usually how I'd recommend going about things, but this is James we're talking about. Maybe you need to do something to make him jealous?"

"Jealous?"

"Oh, is that why you told me?" Remus asked with a look of understanding dawning on his face. "I mean, you were trying to confess to him and he got the wrong idea or something didn't he? You do tend to panic a bit when you're nervous," he teased with a laugh and Sirius wasn't sure if he should laugh along or start crying in despair. "But that's okay, I'll help you out."

"You will?" he asked stupidly, not really knowing how to dig himself out of this mess.

"Of course, Sirius," Remus replied warmly. "You're my friend and I'll always help you out. So, how about tonight? We can meet up at the pub a little bit early so that he catches us talking together privately."

" _WHAT_?"

"Oh, but we should agree on some ground rules. We don't want to come across too strong or you'll scare James away instead of reeling him in. So, how about hand holding and cheek kisses?"

"Hand holding?" Sirius whimpered, wondering if he had accidentally died on his way to the dorm room and ended up in hell.

"Yeah, he already knows I'm gay so it'll be a little more obvious that we're there as _more-than-friends_. Otherwise he'll be too dim to realize what you're trying to do. So, tonight?"

"Yeah, tonight is great," he replied and was rewarded with the supernova smile that Remus only showed his friends.

"Okay, it's a date! We can chat more about your plan for James there."

"O-oh, okay. Uh, see you."

Remus waved excitedly and then promptly jumped back into his book without a second glance. Sirius slowly turned on his heel and marched out of their room in a daze, wondering how the hell he had gotten into this situation and how he was going to get out of it.

"How did it go?!" James whispered from down the hall where he was standing by the vending machines with Peter.

Sirius glanced over at him and smiled weakly. "Uh, we've got a date tonight."

"Whoo hoo!!!!!" James cheered before high-fiving Peter. "You go, man!"

"Oh hell," Sirius muttered as he dropped his face into his hands. 

_What a mess._


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspired by [this](https://wolfywordweaver.tumblr.com/post/615408592929046528/angry-badger-bitch-sirius-ive-been-dropping) chat on Tumblr by @angry-badger-bitch

"I don't think this is working, Sirius."

The words shouldn't have surprised Sirius as much as they did, but he had never really been one to deal well with reality.

"Oh, um." He stared at the table between the two of them for a moment before forcing his eyes to look back up into those hazel ones.

Remus smiled sympathetically. "I'm just afraid that James just isn't getting it. Honestly, it's pretty surprising considering how much he likes you."

Sirius deflated. He and Remus had been going on dates for about three months now and he had only fallen more in love with his bookish friend. Unfortunately the underlying reason behind their "dating" was getting James to like him and Sirius knew that was never going to happen. He didn't even want it to! All he wanted was Remus, and it was his own fault that this whole mess had gone as far as it had. James didn't know that Remus thought he was in love with James and Remus didn't know that Sirius was head-over-heels in love with him. 

"Sorry," he mumbled as he stared down at his empty plate.

Their dinner had been delicious but all he could taste was bitterness now. He had enjoyed their three months of "dating" so much and never wanted it to end. 

"It's not your fault," Remus pressed. "I'm just sorry that this hasn't really helped with you and James. Maybe he needs something a lot more overt? Something with less subtlety? He's a pretty oblivious bloke."

Sirius stared at Remus in disappointment. He'd spent those three months trying to show Remus the truth of the matter even if he couldn't get his mouth to form the proper words. 

"You mean that I just need to tell him straight out?" he asked miserably.

"Yes, exactly. Like, 'hey, I love you!' Or something like that."

"You think that will really work?"

"No...but maybe? It's worth a shot."

"Hey, Remus?"

"Yeah?"

Sirius took a deep breath, reached across the table and took Remus' hand. By Merlin he was going to get this out if it killed him.

"I love you," he admitted, heart pounding and eyes firmly focused on Remus.

A golden smile bloomed across those lips and Remus beamed happily at him.

"Yes! Just like that, Sirius! That's how you need to tell him."

WHAT. THE. FUCK.

"Great eye contact and everything."

HOLY FUCKING SHIT.

"And I'm sorry, if he doesn't get it after a confession like that then I don't know what will. Maybe you should consider that he's too stupid for you."

"You're killing me, Moony," he groaned as he dropped his head against the table.

"Oh, don't worry," Remus soothed. "I know that you can't help who you fall in love with, and I'll still support you no matter what."

"Good to know," he mumbled against the table, heart and head aching. 

"Maybe you need to just skip past asking him on a date," Remus sighed as he tapped on his chin thoughtfully. "Maybe you should just straight up propose to him? I mean, you've both known each other for so long that maybe it won't be too weird and a gesture like that is sure to finally get his attention. You know how he likes big and bold."

Sirius looked up at the young man that had completely ruined his heart for anyone else and sighed. "Yeah, something that he can't get confused for a just-friends move."

"Exactly!"

"Bloody hell..."

**

"Is there something on your mind?" James asked carefully as Sirius sat on the bench quietly with his face in his hands. 

"Yeah," he muttered through his fingers.

"C'mon, Sirius, we've got a game in like, five minutes. Spill it. You can't take this onto the court with you."

"Yeah, but..." Sirius sighed again as he sat up and stared at the messy locker room. "I think that I'm going to propose to Remus."

"What?!" James squealed excitedly before sliding next to his best friend on the bench. "It's been going that well?"

Sirius grimaced, but as he had never admitted the truth to how he and Remus got together he couldn't exactly explain it properly. "Er, yeah."

"So...what's the problem?"

It was embarrassing, but he knew that he needed help. "I'm just being nervous about how to ask him. Like, should I get on one knee? In front of a crowd or alone? What would I even say?"

James thought for a moment before shrugging.

"Hey, just practice on me." Sirius gave him an unamused look but James insisted. "C'mon, man. This is obviously bothering you enough to screw up our last few practices and this is an important game! I mean, it's also a super important moment in your life, so why not practice? I'm not going to judge you."

Knowing that his brother was right yet again, he nodded. "Okay, but don't laugh at me."

"I'd never, Sirius," he assured with a soft hand on his shoulder. "I'll stand and you kneel, okay? Kneeling is definitely important."

"Okay. Phew." 

He went into his locker and pulled out the ring he had been hiding for a few days. James took a peek at the band with a small moon made out of sapphires.

"Whoo, that's super cute. I think he'll love it."

"Thanks," Sirius replied with a blush and grin. "Okay, here I go."

He knelt in front of James and held out the ring in both hands. James struck a haughty pose and waggled his eyebrows.

"Is there something you want to tell me?" he asked with a smirk and Sirius couldn't help but relax.

"Yes, now shut up. Okay. Look, I know that we've just been friends for a really long time, but I want you to know how much I love you." James had already shifted into a more earnest expression, his hands over his heart. The prat was a horrid sucker for romance. "You're the moon to my stars, and I love you. Every bloody inch of you! I want you to be in my life for forever. I want to adore and love you for the rest of my life. Would that be okay? Would you marry me?"

"Yes!!!" James cried happily with a tear in his eye. "That's-"

"Congratulations!!!!" voices shouted excitedly, cutting off James' encouraging words and startling both of the young men.

"I can't believe this!" Angus Wood cheered as he marched into the locker room with tears in his eyes and followed by a good portion of the team and their coach. "You guys!"

"Congratulations," Frank added as he hugged the two petrified friends.

"Oh, no, uh-" James tried to explain but he was interrupted by the ecstatic voices of their other close friends.

"I'm so happy for you two!" Remus declared with moist eyes as he jumped to hug both of them.

James shot Sirius an alarmed glance and Sirius shrugged helplessly. What a fucking mess.

"This is great!" Peter exclaimed and Sirius realized for the first time that his friend had the video camera trained on the two of them. 

"Oh no," he whispered in shock, his voice completely drowned by all the congratulations and cheers.

"Is that-?" James asked as he looked up at the ceiling.

"Oh yeah, this is on the kiss cam!" Peter explained as he continued recording. 

That muted sound of thunderous applause and cheers was indeed the entire arena going crazy for the unexpected proposal.

"Get the damned kiss out of the way," Coach Godric grumbled as he tried to get all the players out of the locker room, "and get back on the fucking court! We've got a game to play!"

"We'll win this whole tournament for you guys!" Gideon chuckled emotionally as he wiped his eyes. "So fucking romantic!"

Remus stepped away and clapped excitedly as Peter zoomed in on the two pale players. Sirius and James looked at each other and chuckled nervously.

"Well, I guess we've got to," Sirius choked.

"Haha, okay." James leaned in close before whispering an additional, "I'm going to kill you for this, Padfoot."

"Please do," Sirius murmured back before moving forward and smashing their lips together in their first kiss. They were officially "engaged" now.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note that there are more than three chapters! I hope you enjoy the conclusion of the story. <3

victory over the Hufflepuffs in the pub besides them. This win meant that they only had the Finals against the Slytherins to worry about. 

"I'm sorry, okay?!" Sirius shouted back with tears in his eyes. "I fucking tried to tell him, like a million times! He just wasn't getting it, which is why I wanted to fucking propose! There wasn't supposed to be a way to mess up a damn proposal!"

"Well we sure found a way, didn't we," James sighed as he banged his head against the bricks. "Lily is never going to go out with me now."

"I'm glad that your only concern is for yourself," Sirius grumbled as he crouched down and leaned against the filthy wall. He pulled out a cigarette and lit up.

"Coach doesn't want you to smoke," James groaned between impacts.

"I don't fucking care right now."

There was nothing but the sound of cars driving by and the murmur of voices from the restaurants surrounding them.

"What are we supposed to do now?" James asked helplessly. "All our teammates are so fucking excited and I don't exactly want to break their hearts right before the fucking _finals_. But if this goes on too long it'll be super weird to break it off!"

"I have no bloody idea," Sirius responded around his cigarette. 

"Ugh. You know what we're going to have to do, right?"

"No. What?"

James stopped banging his head into the brick wall and rubbed at the chafed spot on his forehead. "We're going to have to ask someone for help. Someone who's not stupid."

"Thanks, asshole."

"Lily is smart. Smarter than us, at least."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Are you sure that you're not just trying to find a way to tell her the truth before everyone else finds out? So that you can hit on her again?"

"At least she knows that I like _her_ ," James shot back before wincing. It was a cheap shot and he knew it.

"What are you two doing out here?"

Both boys looked over at the half-drunk Peter staggering towards them. He had always been a bit of a lightweight. 

"Hi, Pete," James replied softly.

"Aww, were you two out here for a bit of privacy?" he giggled bringing a grimace to both boys.

"Piss off," Sirius shot back. 

"That's what Remus told me to do," Peter laughed before sliding down to sit next to Sirius. "You all have got to start treating me better or I'm liable to find better friends."

James rolled his eyes but Sirius perked up a bit. "Is Moony doing okay?"

"Yeah, just feeling a bit left out I think."

Sirius tried not to let his heart get too excited. Remus had seemed so happy for the two of them, but was it too much to hope that he was maybe finally a bit jealous?

"How so?"

Peter shrugged and gestured for a drag on the cigarette. "It's just that, I think he wishes that he could be in a relationship. Poor sod."

"Why would he think that he can't?" Sirius pressed. This was news to him, but apparently Peter just thought it was hilarious. 

"Duh, because he's aro, man!"

"WHAT?!"

"Yeah," Peter mumbled around the cigarette before taking a deep breath. "Hell, don't act so surprised. He told us like, five years ago or something." Sirius and James stared at each other in shock while Peter continued. "Yeah, it's been a bummer. He never seems to be able to tell when someone's flirting with him because his brain just doesn't get it. Thinks they're being nice or something. I keep teasing him about it because, he's a flirt magnet but hasn't once realized it."

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Sirius growled. James laughed at the ridiculousness of the situation. 

"Yeah, lucky bastard," Peter carried on. "Attracting all the guys and girls. Wish I had that much luck. But it's not like he'd agree to anything, anyways."

"What...just speak plain English, man!" Sirius cried desperately. He wanted so badly to shake Peter by the collar, but it wouldn't do much good at all with him as drunk as he was.

"You know, some aros don't ever want to get in a relationship or anything but some do," Peter continued sagely. "Remus really wants someone, but like, he thinks that he doesn't have a chance. Been pining for years."

"WHO?!!!!" Sirius did grab Peter by the collar this time.

Dazed blue eyes looked up at him in shock. "I dunno. Just someone. But yeah, for years."

Sirius almost started sobbing. That's why Remus wouldn't give him the time of day - he was head over heels for someone else. And he never let Sirius down softly because he never fucking noticed all the flirting Sirius did with him. What a fool he'd been.

James wrinkled his brows as he stared at his devastated best friend and his drunk other friend.

"Fuck, give me that cig," he grumbled before snatching it out of Peter's hand. "And wait, isn't Remus like our resident dating expert? Everyone goes to him for fucking advice."

Peter just focused on patting Sirius' head. "Well yeah, but that's 'cause of all those romance books he likes to read. He can read, James."

"I _know_ , but I can read and that doesn't mean that anyone comes to me for advice!"

"Sirius does," he tutted back.

Sirius grimaced. "Look where that's gotten me, Pete."

"Crying in an alley with no boyfriend and no fiance," James replied sagely.

"I hate you," Sirius muttered.

Peter stared between the two of them. "What? Didn't you guys just get engaged?"

"Oh fuck it all," Sirius groaned as he covered his head with his team pullover.

**

"What would you guys do without me?"

Marlene grinned widely as she heard the chorus of groans from her drunk friends and she made sure all the blinds were shut tight. She was gluten sensitive so she had never really gotten into the beer-binging habits that the boys on the team did and she found that supremely helpful when she did her managerial rounds to check on them after the parties. The coach would want them all in working order by practice so it was in her best interest to get these guys sorted as quickly as possible. Tending to Peter and Remus was only because she was feeling generous and keeping the captain of the team happy was always a good idea. She'd even get him a date with Lily if she could.

"Mmffghhm."

"Good morning to you too," she chuckled as she pulled back the blankets that had been haphazardly tossed over the two bodies. Remus blinked sleepily at her while Sirius continued snoring loudly. "Damn, how do you sleep through that racket, Remus?" She held out a hot cup of coffee.

"Mmmm, 's not so bad," he groaned as he accepted the cup.

"It's awful."

He grinned softly and ran his fingers through the silky black hair. "Do they have practice today?"

"Not on the court, but coach wants the lovebirds to be at the gym this afternoon. To be good examples and such."

Remus' smile faltered a bit. "Oh, yeah."

"I'm just surprised these dummies didn't go at it like crazy when they got back in from the party," she giggled. "I don't envy you at all, Remus. I hear that James can be pretty loud."

"I...don't need to hear that," he sighed.

"Oh come on, you've been their roommate for forever. Surely you've caught them in the act before!"

"Actually, no, and I'd rather not."

Marlene just rolled her eyes. "Such a prude."

"That's not it," he grumbled against the rim of his cup. Green eyes stared down at the zonked out young man.

"I didn't even know they were dating," she continued to ramble as she tugged on James' leg and tried to force him into enough consciousness to take some Tylenol. "How long have they been? And why were they keeping it a secret?"

Remus felt a knot in his throat. He had been trying so hard to be happy for Sirius and James but every ounce of him didn't want to be. Ridiculous. How selfish could he be? They were in love and happy, and finally moving on with the romance that Sirius had been dying for. What could someone like him offer Sirius in the realm of romance? He couldn't even understand it! How did flowers make anyone feel special? How was dinner with a date any more romantic than dinner with a friend? Why was it romantic? Remus didn't know and he couldn't expect Sirius to want to deal with someone like him regardless if that's what he had always hoped. 

"You 'kay, Moony?" a soft voice murmured against his neck. 

"Oh, it's nothing," he replied wetly, realizing that there were tears running down his face. "Ah, fuck it."

Sirius frowned at him, those silver eyes bleary. He reached up and wiped away the tears tenderly. "Tell me who made you cry," he croaked, voice rough with untold amounts of cigarettes and beers. "I'll kick their ass for you."

That brought another smile to Remus, all other room occupants forgotten. "It's okay, Padfoot."

The older boy frowned in annoyance. "Only an idiot would make you cry, Moony. You're the best."

"Shhh, go back to bed while you can," he chuckled, pressing a kiss to the top of the other's head. 

An idiot indeed.


	4. Chapter 4

The whole team was panting tiredly as they sat on the track field after a grueling round of drills. Sirius had pushed himself as hard as possible to try to drive all thoughts out of his mind, but retching into the trash can he realized that it had been a fruitless endeavor. Remus was all that he could think about and this mess he had created. Another dry heave and he felt the tears pricking at his eyes. James patted his back kindly as he gulped down his own breaths and Sirius just couldn't stand it anymore. 

"We're not engaged!" he yelled into the trash can before retching up a bit more bile. James' hand froze on his back.

"What?" Gideon wheezed. "Can't hear you with your fucking head in the trash!"

Sirius stood up straight and wiped his mouth as he stared at the other teammates. These guys were like cousins to him, not as close as his Marauder brothers but people that he loved and trusted. 

"James and I," he panted, "we're not engaged guys. I'm not going to keep lying."

They all looked shocked.

"Yeah," James clarified slowly as he patted Sirius' shoulder. "You guys came barging in while he was practicing for proposing to Remus."

Jaws dropped.

"No fucking way!!!"

"Who the fuck practices proposing?!"

"Are you kidding?!"

"Remus?!"

Remus, the quiet student in the journalist club who was only covering the sports section with Peter because he was dorm mates with the two best basketball players the school had seen in 50 years.

Frank covered his mouth in shock before jumping up. "Oh fuck, did we _break_ you guys up? I mean, Remus? He was right there!!!"

Sirius blushed furiously. "Okay, I've got to clear everything up." He started with his useless pining from high school and up through this year and the misunderstanding that led him to fake-dating Remus in order to build fake-jealousy in James and how all he really wanted was to be with Remus. "Not that James isn't a great bloke," he chuckled as he punched the shorter boy in the arm. "But he's just my brother."

The other basketball players looked at each other and their captain before laughing. 

"You guys kissed!" Fabian teased as he wiped the sweat rolling down his freckled face.

"It was like kissing my mother!" James groaned to another round of raucous laughter.

"I don't want this to screw up our game," Sirius stated loudly over the laughter and the tone sobered everyone up. "Really, I was so touched that you all were happy for us even if there wasn't even an 'us' to start with. I want to win over Slytherin, and I know we can. I just..." He glanced over at James. "I didn't want it to be under a false assumption. We weren't trying to manipulate anyone."

There was a moment of quiet consideration as the teammates glanced around each other.

"So...what are we going to do to get you together with Remus?"

Sirius looked up and saw Gideon's earnest expression. A lump formed in his throat and he wiped at the sweat mixing with the tears. 

"Look, guys, I don't even know if I've got a shot with him. He's obviously in love with someon-"

"It's you," the entire team deadpanned.

"W-what?" he sputtered in shock. 

"It's totally obvious now that we've got the whole story!" Benjy laughed. "Come one, let's not drag this out any longer!"

"Yeah," Frank crowed. "Let's make a game plan!"

James wrapped an arm around his brother's shoulder and squeezed. "We'll get this figured out."

**

Alice and Peter worked overtime with their media channels to ensure that the story of James and Sirius' engagement was clarified as a misunderstanding before the Slytherin game rolled around and the team focused on their game plans. Game day drew near and the whole campus was in a flurry of Lion Pride. As they packed into the bus, Sirius glanced through the cheering crowd and caught sight of Remus. Like a good member of the Journalism Club he was dutifully taking pictures of the farewell gathering and well wishes. They hadn't had a decent conversation since the news came out that he was not in fact engaged to James Potter, but he was hoping that this trip would finally resolve this whole mess. This was the do-or-die moment. 

He shot the green-eyed boy a smile and a wink and was rewarded with a shy wave. 

"Do you think this is going to work, James?" he mumbled as they took their seats.

"Absolutely," James replied confidently. He tossed a ball up and caught it before spinning it on the tips of his forefinger and thumb. 

Rubbing softly at his arm, Sirius hoped so. 

**

The atmosphere was electric as the teams returned to their benches for one last talk with their coaches before the game started. Green and silver filled the arena, but there was a decent number of red and gold banners. Television crews and social media journalists were busy snapping video and photo footage for the fans not present. Sirius tugged off his pullover and threw it behind the bench carelessly. His stomach was in knots and for many different reasons. The pressure of the finals, all the coursework he'd been ignoring to focus on this game, his little brother standing on the opposite side of the court, and the oblivious love of his life seated right behind their bench with his phone out live-tweeting the game. Peter offered a thumbs up from behind his camera and he nodded before turning his full attention on the coach's words. 

"Does the tape need any adjusting?" Minerva asked nervously as she lifted the hem of his shorts to inspect the shimmery gold kineseo-tape.

"It's good, Minnie," he muttered before leaning over and placing his hand in the center of their huddle. 

"GO FOR GOLD!!!!" they chanted loudly and aggressively, James leading them on. "GOLD, GOLD, GOLD!!!"

"Alright, let's go get this, boys!" James cheered and they all whooped and cheered before the final chant.

"GRYFFINDORS!!!"

The crowd erupted in frantic cheers and Sirius quickly checked to make sure that his hair was tucked up tightly. These bastards wouldn't hesitate to rip a chunk out of his scalp if the hair wasn't secure. Severus sneered at him from across the half-point line as they settled for the jump ball and he returned the look. Regulus looked focused behind Severus, but Sirius wasn't going to let himself get distracted. 

The whistle tweeted before the ref walked up between the players. The ball was up and the game was officially started. Years of focused training went into the next couple of hours. There was screaming, shoving, jumping, and practically wrestling on the court as both teams scraped and clawed through the game without giving in. That damned Snape wasn't going to give him a break down at the post and Sirius had to use every trick and skill he knew to get any advantage. Half-time found them five points behind and Sirius trying to stifle a bloody nose so that he could jump in immediately in the second half. The cheerleaders whipped the crowd into a frenzy and Sirius vaguely wondered if the fans were sweating as much as all the players were.

Second half was brutal and Sirius was sure that he was going to be sitting in a vat of ice water for a long time. Joints screamed with the abuse of rapid back and forth and innumerable jumps. His lungs screamed with the burn of long minutes spent sprinting and his ribs ached with the sharp elbows that had been thrown. Two points behind and Sirius managed a steal from Rabastan in front of the Gryffindor bench. The boos and hisses almost drowned out the eager screams and as those silver eyes scanned down the court for the best pass his hairband snapped. His arm wound back and a half-court toss to James was launched. Without even glancing to the stands, Sirius held out his hand and snatched in mid-air the hair band tossed his way. 

Overwhelming warmth nearly took him to his knees, as shaky as his legs already were. For as long as they had known each other, Remus had always worn extra hair bands on his wrists. He had been the first to lean how to braid hair and had patiently taught James so that someone could do it for Sirius over the summers. They had gone through countless hair bands, lost in the midst of pranks, stunts, sports, and other shenanigans. He had never failed to have a spare ready and in that moment Sirius had just known that Remus would have one.

Cheers roared as James sunk in the ball, tying up the game and with more clarity than he had ever felt, Sirius just knew. 

Remus loved him. He always had. And he loved Remus. 

There wasn't time to ponder that realization as he delved back into the frantic plays, but Sirius felt the strange desperation to hurry their victory along. He needed to talk to Remus, to finally put words to this thing they'd carried between them for so long. 

"Gah!" he screamed in frustration as he fouled Snape again. 

That damned snake was their best free throw shooter and he had no doubt that his error just put Slytherin back in the lead. James slapped his ass in annoyance and consolation before they took their places to pick up any rebound. It was hard not to give in to the temptation to spew out all the colorful words he was thinking of, but getting booted out of the game was the last thing they needed as the timer wound down. As expected, Severus sunk the ball into the hoop easily twice, although his shaking hands afterwards and the flush on his cheeks reminded Sirius that the Slytherins had been pushing just as hard and were just as tired. 

It was sheer willpower that carried the game forward through the last few minutes. James shone like the captain that he was, encouraging the team and shouting plays and calls. The teams were deadlocked in defense, the score remaining the same as the minutes and seconds ticked by. Regulus screamed in frustration and clenched his hair as the referee fouled him out of the game. James refrained from dancing in delight as he was only one foul short of being fouled out himself. There were no more time outs and less than a minute on the clock, both teams putting everything on the court leaving nothing in reserve. The refs were allowing a lot more shoving and pushing, the offenses were being shut down, the passes were cutting sharply, and all eyes were darting to the clock and back. 

Something close to a premonition lit up in Sirius' exhausted synapses. He could see the way James was eyeing the ball and he knew that this was their last chance to make a goal. Taking the risk he left his defensive zone and sprinted down the court. He heard the gasps and screams from the crowd and knew that the steal was successful. There was no time to spare. Sirius stumbled as he adjusted to catch the ball and twisted to make a shot with his best guess. It was going to be a fucking half-court last ditch effort and his lips twisted in concentration as he took the dribble and lifted the ball for the ugly shot. There was nothing beautiful about what he would attempt. His arms burned too much to be certain of even making that distance and he was already off balance. 

The moment he took the shot a solid impact hit him right in the back and knocked him clean off his feet. The buzzer rang, the whistle shrieked, and the crowd was roaring in a mixture of outrage and victory. Sirius scrabbled up to his feet before swaying and then being crushed in the screaming embrace of James and the other Gryffindors. Whistles were blowing, but no one was paying any attention, and Sirius felt the wetness of tears and sweat against his neck. Nausea bubbled up his throat and Sirius just leaned against James and accepted the group hug. 

The cheers soothed at the sharp pain throbbing in his face and Sirius didn't even notice when he blacked out.


	5. Chapter 5

"Is he going to be okay?"

Sirius blinked tiredly at the yellowed white ceiling in view.

"He'll need someone to keep an eye on him," the familiar voice of Minerva replied, "but I think that it's a mild concussion. We'll take him to the hospital before heading to the hotel."

"You should go to do the interviews," the coach murmured to his star player. 

"You should too, Coach" Minerva encouraged. "I'll stay here with him."

"'M okay, Prongs," Sirius grumbled as he tried to sit up.

"Hey, hey, just lay still okay?" James was standing over him with a worried expression. "Guys, he's awake!"

In short order the entire team was standing over him, still red-faced and sopping with sweat. He must not have been out for too long.

"Damn, boy," Gideon laughed nervously. "You sure know how to scare the hell out of us!"

"Sorry," Sirius chuckled softly before groaning as he pressed a palm to the ice pack already being held to his head. "Who the fuck hit me?"

"Rodolphus fucking tackled you!" Frank snapped angrily. "It got him a technical, but there at the end they couldn't really do anything. We won and there was no point in another free throw."

"Congrats, guys," he offered with a lopsided smile. "We finally got that trophy! Get the fuck out there and claim it!"

James paused as all the others cheered and he knelt down by his brother. "Hey, do you want to forget about that other stuff? With Remus? We can figure something else out."

"Help me sit up," Sirius huffed. Those strong hands pulled him up and maneuvered him until he was leaning against the wall.

"You look like shit, Padfoot," the shorter of the two chuckled.

"Why thank you, Prongs. Way to build a bloke's confidence before he proposes to the love of his life."

Smiling warmly, James leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to the pale cheek. "I'll send him down."

After James got up and left Minerva came back and did another examination. She was pleased with his lucidity but still insisted that they head to the hospital when he finished proposing. 

"Not even going to let me touch that trophy?" he grumbled. "I made that final shot, Minnie."

"You can touch it all you want on our way home," she snapped as she tucked her flashlight away. "I'm going to get you some more ice."

"Thanks," he sighed, pressing the cold compress even more firmly against the swollen knot on his forehead. The impact had been right at the end of his eyebrow and the quick glimpse he caught in a mirror did not reflect well. It was already bruising and he was still feeling queasy. 

"Sirius?" 

The worried tone caught his attention immediately and Sirius almost forgot about the pain. He grabbed at the ring box that James generously remembered to place near him.

"Back here, Remus."

The messy-haired man came in quickly and fell to his knees to examine the injury. Sirius grimaced at the ice pack being pulled away but didn't stop his hopefully soon-to-be-betrothed from inspecting the damage.

"Fuck, I was so scared when you passed out," he sighed in relief. "Is it a concussion?"

"Yeah, but it's not a big deal. Minnie's going to make me go to the hospital soon, though."

"The hospital?! That sounds like a big freaking deal!"

"Wait, wait," Sirius tried as he reached a hand out to calm his friend. "It's okay, it's just a precaution! Um, but I want to ask you something."

"What?" Remus asked, his teeth biting down on those distracting lips.

If he wasn't so exhausted, Sirius was sure that he'd be a blubbering mess again. He was too tired to freak out. 

"Remus, I want you to listen to me. I'm talking to you, okay? Just you."

"Uh, o-okay." 

He fidgeted slightly and got comfortable at Sirius' feet. The black-haired man thought it was a funny change of normal proposing procedure, with Remus doing the kneeling and him sitting there patiently. 

"I never dated James and I sure as hell didn't propose to him. You know that, don't you?"

Remus was fidgeting still.

"Well, I did see that article about you...not proposing to James. You were..." His eyes widened and his tone dropped. "You were practicing your proposal."

"Yeah, I was. James has known about my crush for years and he's been trying his best to get me to act on it. But it's hard to tell you my feelings because you're so fucking beautiful and I love your smile and those beautiful freckles and those _eyes._ " Sirius grinned lopsidedly. "I love you, Remus. _You_. And I'm not practicing on you or with you. You are the one I want to marry. I've got a ring and everything."

He pulled out the box and held it towards Remus. Those green eyes were wide and staring at the box. 

"I...uh..."

"I like how we are Remus, and I'm not expecting things to change with us. We can figure things out as we go if we want to change anything. I want to kiss you and I want to make love to you, but I don't really know everything about Aros and Aces and it's all spectrums anyway so it's different for everyone. But I just want you, Remus. Will you have me? Whether dating, engaged, or married? I'll take what I can get at this point."

Green eyes glanced at the box and then Sirius before his fingers flipped open the velvet lid. The metal band glinted in the crappy locker room light and he let out a shaky sigh when he saw the moon in sapphires. 

"Do you mean it, Sirius?"

"You can ask James if you doubt my sincerity," he chuckled before groaning at the throbbing in his head. "But that'll probably have to wait until after the hospital visit."

"Well," Remus started before clearing his throat. "As your fiancé I should probably go with you. To the hospital."

Sirius grinned more widely. 

"So that's a yeah?"

"That would be a hell yeah." 

Remus pulled the ring out of the box and slipped it on his finger before Sirius tutted and slipped it off only to put it on himself.

"That's my job, sir." The two chuckled for a minute before Sirius allowed himself to cup that gorgeous face with the hand not frozen to the ice pack. "I'd like to kiss you, if that's okay."

"With you, that's definitely okay," 

No sooner had their lips touched than the whole room erupted in cheers and well wishes. Sirius nearly jumped out of his skin and stared in shock as all of his teammates came barreling in. Peter was grinning and half-hidden behind the camera as he recorded and he gave the two a thumbs up. James was in tears as he babbled to Remus about how stupid they all were and how he was so happy for them. It didn't take long for Minerva to come in and shoo off everyone stating that the news networks weren't going to wait forever and might just give the trophy to the Slytherins to have something to record. That got the boys out of the door immediately and shortly after Minerva and the newly engaged couple were off to the hospital. 

**

"Really, Sirius? Is this still going to be a thing?" 

Sirius ignored his groaning brother and continued to stare dreamily at Remus as the young man shelved books. 

"The pining continues," Peter sighed dramatically.

Remus glanced over his shoulder and blushed before turning his attention back to his job. There weren't many students up and about at the library this early, but the Marauders operated as a pack. If Remus was up for his job, then they were all up and studying. 

"Shouldn't you be focused on your homework?" James continued complaining. "I mean, you flunked all your midterms."

"Hmmm," Sirius sighed in response, his chin resting on his palm. 

"Bloody hell, he's lost all his remaining braincells," Peter chuckled. "He didn't have that many to spare before the concussion."

Seeing Remus move around to the other side of the books shelves, Sirius perked up. 

"I've got, uh, a book to look up." 

He grinned mischievously and jumped up to head to the shelves after Remus. Both other boys stared after him for a moment before shaking their heads.

"You'd be the same way if you could ever talk Lily into dating you," Peter finally muttered.

"Oh shut up," James snapped back. "And hand me that book."


End file.
